I suspect you’re very slowly yet steadily breaking up old accretions in there. That will take time. And at times it may seem to stop completely for a while. And then probably start up again, either in tiny bits, or fits and starts, or in sudden large loosenings and expellings. So, steady as she goes. You’ll get there. Or somewhere better.
“What did you do on Christmas Eve, Contrary?”
“Why, I read all about snot on the Straight Dope!”
Yeah, I’ll get there! It’s good to know the above. Now I won’t think something has gone wrong if sometimes it’s one step forward and two back.
I’m extremelly persistent when there is reason to believe persistence pays off–and I have a goal in mind. A goal I stalled out on when my healing from other problems hit a plateau. Being able to breathe better might make that goal possible, and this is just one leg of a decade-long journey. I am one motivated woman!
That’s why I needed to make sure I have the right kind of hope, though. The right kind of hope keeps you moving. Unrealistic hope cuts you when it shatters in your hands. I’ve got the right kind of hope now. 
So now I just go about living, keep this as part of my routine, and let time take care of itself.
Hey! Today I didn’t get a fast, steady drip-drip-drip from the right, I got an actual stream of water!
Now if only the left nostril would be so cooperative.
Progress, measured in small steps. Or drips. Or something.
I’m not getting clots o’ snot, just runny mucus. And snot seems to keep gradually draining throughout the day. It may take awhile, but I may once more breathe freely every day!
Are you my mirror twin??? My right, your left, seriously.
This morning my husband said to me, “I never thought I’d use the word *love *about a neti pot but I love that thing. It’s not that the process is so good, but I can tell when I don’t use it. And I don’t have boogers any more.”
I love him using it because his snoring has drastically decreased which means I sleep more. Hallelujah!
Ok, I’ve just read this ENTIRE thread and I’m convinced…time to get a neti pot. I get congestion related to one of my, ahem, hobbies…this might just help. I’ll try it out this weekend and see what happens.
Ditto. Wash and I went to Walmart this afternoon and bought three neti pots. We’ll have our own neti pot and the third will be given to a friend who has similar sinus related issues.
I’m miserable. Yesterday I started sneezing a lot, started feeling miserable later in the day. I decided I either had a cold or a new sinus infection/sinusitis. Woke up with a really bad sinus headache and fever. Took some cold medicine and tried the neti pot when the headache went away. Nothing came out, it didn’t even run down the back of my throat. I have spent the last three months of this year either suffering from sinus problems or the flu or recovering from them. I suppose I should use it daily. I just get frustrated when it doesn’t work and I end up pouring a bunch of liquid up my nose and nothing comes out.
This morning I got tired of listening to mini-Marli snort and snuffle around so I filled up my neti pot and instructed her on how to use it. She didn’t manage a whole pot, but it loosened things up enough so she was able to blow her nose and get a ton of gunk out.
I’ve converted the young one - still working on the husband.
(Yes, I washed the thing thoroughly before and after she used it.)
Sorry to hear you’re feeling so miserable. Sinus infections are horrid.
I’ve been flushing my sinuses once every day, and twice a day when I don’t have work. QtM said up the thread that it can take months to clear everything out if you’ve had gunk stuck in your sinuses for a long time. I figure that I want to keep all of that as soft as possible to help it come out, rather than letting it dry out again by waiting too long in between sessions.
I haven’t had quite the trouble you’re experiencing with nothing coming out, but I think that’s because it’s my sinuses and not my nasal passages that are really blocked. Even so, I did get a lot more water trapped in my sinuses when I first started than I am now. That wasn’t always pleasant, but I tried to see it as helping to soften up the gunk so it could begin to come out later or in the next session.
Some things have helped water move out after I’ve irrigated. One is leaning forward with my head as low as I can get it and looking at the floor. Another is lying back. The third is a yoga move when you get on all fours, then arch your back up while looking toward your belly. Then you arch your back down while looking up toward the ceiling. It’s when I look up toward the ceiling that a bunch of water comes out.
Anyway, persistence seems to be paying off. I only get a tiny amount out of my sinuses each time, but yesterday and today, I got a slightly bigger tiny amount out. I know it’s frustrating sometimes going through a slow healing process, but what’s the alternative? It’s better than months and years of not healing at all. Hang in there, and keep trying. Hope you’re feeling better soon.
Okay, I’ve had my neti pot for a year and finally tried it. It certainly didn’t run as freely as the guy on YouTube, but some came out and it seemed to loosen things up a bit. I guess I’ll keep trying.
StG
I’ve made using my neti pot part of my morning routine, since that’s when I’ve got the most build-up. For the past few years I’ve gotten headaches on at least a weekly basis - this year it’s been almost daily, with migraines being more frequent. Since I started cleaning out my nose the headaches are going away, and if I do it when I feel one starting, sometimes the headache goes away entirely (sometimes it just takes the edge off, which is nice still).
There’s frequently a small amount of blood, though, especially in the morning. I don’t mean blood dripping out with the water, but some of the boogers (the drier ones I think) are a little bloody. Is this something I should be concerned about? It’s always been that way, not just since I started using a neti pot.
It’s been…like, a week or so now, and things are finally beginning to loosen up!
It’s exciting. At this rate, though, it’ll be another year before my nose is finally clear.
Thanks. The funny thing is that the first time I used it was after I had the flu for a week and everything flowed well, it had been draining on its own pretty well but I started getting sinus pressure and wanted to keep everything flowing. After that I think my sense of smell and taste were better but I didn’t try it again for another week and then nothing flowed through.
I’m feeling better after much decongestants and saline nasal sprays. Going to try the neti pot again tonight since I feel stuff trying to drain now.
Ok, so I tried it. It wasn’t an actual Neti Pot but rather a different brand and style. Its basically a cheeze wiz bottle filled with salt water…hold down the nozzle and spray it up there. WHile the results weren’t spectacular it did work and I was able to get some gunk out that had been stuck. I normally get a couple of really nasty sinus infections a year so I’m hoping that regular use of this will help me out there.
All said and done I think its worth doing regularly, at the very least worth trying out.
My sinuses have been bugging the crap out of me for the last week so I bought myself a neti pot tonight. It’s a cheapie plastic one that came with 50 packets of salt mix. It was way easier to use than I expected. I’m not convinced that it did any good but I do feel more clear.
I was chatting with my pharmacist about neti pots and he says “Why don’t you try this Free Sample nasal wash bottle?” Well, who can turn down a Free Sample ?! So I took it home and tried it.
I used it in the shower as someone else recommended, and I couldn’t quite tell if I was doing it right, except maybe for a little while. I must say, that is quite the extraordinary sensation to feel the water running around to go out the other nostril.
This morning I used it over the sink and discovered that it’s easier for me on one side than it is the other (probably due to handed-ness).
Like some others upthread, it makes me feel weird for an hour or two afterwards - last night it gave me a headache - but later it feels soothed. I will probably keep this on hand for use in case I do get congested.
After I used my Neti pot for the first time, I spent ten minutes huddled in a corner, convinced I had narrowly escaped killing myself. Am I doing something wrong?
How do neti pots do with mouth-breathing? I tend to get congested enough at night that I wake up with my mouth all dry and my tongue is stiff because I wasn’t able to breath sufficiently through my nose. It goes away during the day though. The most successful thing I’ve found is taking Claratin-D, but it is expensive and I don’t like the idea of taking daily OTC meds.